


Along the Way

by circular_infinity



Category: Roswell New Mexico (TV 2019)
Genre: Gen, POV Maria DeLuca, Rated for some swearing, but no actual drug use in this fic, mentions of drug use, mentions of liz/kyle, some background liz/max but they’re not together
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-01-01
Packaged: 2021-02-27 05:34:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,701
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22071853
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/circular_infinity/pseuds/circular_infinity
Summary: Rosa's car breaks down, leaving Liz and Maria waiting on I-380.
Relationships: Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 12





	Along the Way

**Author's Note:**

> For halfthealphabet on tumblr who asked for “Liz, Max, Maria with Liz x Max, Maria x Liz (romantic or platonic), Prompt: Teen Liz and Maria is something I'd love any kind of content for XD”

It's overcast and not a particularly hot day so it's definitely something wrong with Rosa's car when it overheats. 

Liz’s junior year has been even busier than last year and Maria barely sees her these days. Between school and extra-curriculars and work and (ugh) Kyle, Liz has rarely had time for anything else since September. Maria has her own busy schedule and they don’t often find time these days when they're not both already booked. Sure, she sees Liz when she’s over at the Crashdown hanging out with Rosa, but that’s certainly not the same thing as hanging out with Liz solo. Liz had filled up her spring break with shifts at the Crashdown because Rosa’s been increasingly unreliable lately, but Mr. Ortecho told Liz not to work the weekend so Maria and Liz had taken advantage of one of Liz's few free days to visit Bottomless Lakes State Park and of course Rosa’s POS has died on the way back. 

Maria’s taking it significantly better than Liz. She’s happy to spend time with Liz even it it’s on the side of 380. Liz is staring at the engine and swearing in Spanish as if that’ll help it cool down. 

“Does anything look broken?” Maria asks when Liz finally ventures out from underneath the still propped open hood. 

“It’s just a shitty car with a shitty radiator,” Liz says. “I’m sorry, I meant to check the fluids before we left, but things were crazy at my house this morning and I forgot.” 

“I’m not worried,” Maria says. 

“We might be stuck here for a while.” 

“I’m still not worried,” she says and shrugs. “More time with my BFF.” 

Liz smiles, but she still looks kind of pissed - probably at Rosa for not maintaining her car. For a moment it looks as if Liz is gearing herself up to complain, but she collects herself, sighs and sits down in the shade left by the rock wall by the side of the road. Maria joins her. 

They sit in silence for a little while. Maria can tell Liz needs it and is happy to provide. She never been one to need to fill a room with chatter. 

She does start to think about the joint that’s buried in the bottom of her backpack and thinks it would make an excellent way to pass the time, but Maria uses with Rosa. The fact that Maria participates with Rosa’s drug use in any way is a point of contention between Liz and Maria that they’ve both decided to ignore it for the sake of their friendship. 

"I feel like Roswell gets smaller and smaller every year," Liz says eventually. "I feel like if I stay here I'm just going to disappear with it." 

“There’s only a little more than a year before graduation,” Maria says. 

“Then it’ll be ‘ _Goodbye Roswell_ ’,” Liz says. “I think I’m going to go on a road trip the summer before college.” 

“Oh? Where will you go?” 

“Everywhere. Everywhere in the lower forty-eight. I’ll go to Alaska and Hawaii some other time.” 

“I’ve never been out of state.” 

“I’ve barely left Roswell,” Liz says. “It’s not that I hate the town. My family’s there. But I can’t wait to leave. Does that make sense?” 

“Sure,” Maria says. “You should let me read your palm.” 

Maria’s predictions aren’t as accurate as her mom’s, who says that it’ll take time for Maria to grow into the gift. Maria’s learned all the theatrics of it, which is a part she honestly enjoys, and she’s always been able to see auras, but seeing into people’s minds and into their futures still alludes her. 

For a moment it looks like Liz is going to let her skeptical side win – she’s never said anything, but Maria can tell that Liz doesn’t really believe – but then Liz offers her hands and says, “Sure.” 

Maria takes Liz’s hands, clears her thoughts, opens her mind and… sees nothing. It’s not exactly an unusual reaction, but it’s still a little disappointing. Not one to wallow, Maria decides to have fun. 

“You’re going to go to Hollywood,” Maria says, abandoning any pretense of making this a true reading and going for maximum theatrics. 

Liz ‘ _ooohs_ ’ appreciatively and suppresses a laugh. 

“While you’re there you’re going to find a tall, hansom man who needs your help. He’s a movie producer and he’s late to an important meeting on a movie set because he got a flat tire, but he’s finally in luck! You can change the tire for him.” 

“He can’t change the tire himself?” Liz interrupts. 

“Of course not, he’s rich,” Maria says. “He’s never done anything for himself. He pays people to do things.” 

“Does he give me a million dollars?” 

“No, but he does give you your first job as an actor to show his gratitude.” 

“Ooh, do I become rich and famous?” 

The giggles start to get the better of both of them. 

“Of course you become rich and famous! You earn a trillion dollars by being the twenty-first century’s most famous, brilliant, action star.” 

“I guess I really should get a reliable car so I can take this trip.” 

“Of course, but not before the end of high school. I’d miss you too much.” 

Liz face softens. 

“You’re one of the only things I’m going to miss,” she says. 

“We’ll have to say in touch forever,” Maria says. “Send me postcards of everywhere you go.” 

“I’ll find all the crazy ones with funny slogans.” 

Together they joke around, making up stories about all the things that Liz will do on her trip and all the people she’ll meet, each story more funny and absurd than the last. 

A number of cars have driven by as they were waiting and Maria’s ignored all of them, but now she can see a maroon Jeep starts to slow, clearly intending to stop. 

Actually helpful person or creep? Maria's prepared for both. 

The Jeep pulls up beside the car. Maria can't see the driver clearly, but she can tell it's a guy as he leans towards the open passenger window. 

"Hey," the guy calls. "Do you need... Liz?" 

It's Max Evans. He stares at Liz for a moment, as if seeing her when he wasn’t expecting it has shorted out his brain. 

“Max, hi,” Liz says and stares a bit herself. 

Maria gives them both a moment. Sometimes Maria wishes that Liz had gone for Max 'hi, I spend my life in a book' Evans instead of Kyle 'hi, I’m a huge douchebag' Valenti, but more Max might have meant more Isobel and ugh, Maria honestly doesn’t know who she’d rather be forced to spend time with. It would be like choosing between two evils. 

“Do you guys want a ride?” Max offers. “Or I could come back with help? You can borrow my cell, but I don’t think I have signal.” 

He tries to dig it out of his pocket while still seated and buckled in. Maria nobly doesn’t laugh. 

"There's another car coming," Maria points out. "Why don't you pull over?” 

"Right, of course," Max says. 

He does as she suggested, turns off his Jeep, hops out and finally gets his cell phone. 

"Any signal?" Maria asks. 

"No. Do you know what's wrong?" 

“It overheated,” Liz says. “We were waiting until it cooled down." 

“Does it need more coolant?” Max asks. “I have some water in the back.” 

“Probably,” Liz says. “But it might not start anyway. The battery’s really old and doesn’t charge properly.” 

“I’ll get it to start,” Max says. 

He sounds so overconfident that Maria has to snort a laugh. What’s he going to do? Does he think that his very presence is going to magically charge the battery? What a typical teenage boy thought. 

The back of Max’s Jeep has an assortment of what looks like camping equipment. There are a couple of sleeping bags, what looks like it might be a tent, a cooler and the jugs of water that Max had mentioned. 

"Do you go camping a lot?" Maria asks. Or he was secretly a survival nut and had hidden it well at school? 

"What? Oh, yeah, sometimes," Max says in a way that feels like not a lie, but not an answer either. 

He grabs one of the jugs of water. 

"I'll do it," Liz says, moving to take it from him. 

"I don't mind," Max says. 

"I want to." 

"Okay," he says and hands it over. 

The car has cooled enough to check and so Liz does and adds some water. 

“Let’s hope it starts,” Liz says, but when she tries the engine turns over only once and doesn't start. 

Maria goes to the trunk to get the jumper cables as Max turns his Jeep around so it’s facing the right way to jump Rosa’s car. Once they’re connected the car starts right away. 

“Are you going to the Crashdown?” Max asks as Liz puts the cables away again. “I could follow you to make sure you don’t break down again. If you want. Only if you want. I mean, I am going back to town, but I can just go home.” 

Liz looks over at Maria who shrugs. 

“Sure, thanks,” Liz says. 

Liz goes as a slow pace all the way back to town and Maria can tell she’s keeping an eye on the temperature gage, but they have no more issues and they get back to the Crashdown. Liz pulls around back and Max gives them a wave and drives on. 

"Sorry the end of the day was ruined," Liz says as they get their stuff from the trunk. 

"What are you talking about?" Maria asks. "It doesn't feel ruined. We went to a park, communed with nature, had a small adventure involving a smoking car and then we both got to look at Max's ass as he leaned over a car engine." 

That last bit finally gets Liz to laugh and blush. 

"Don't tell me you weren't checking him out," Maria teases. 

"Maybe a little," Liz admits and Maria gives a shout, half surprise and half triumph. 

"Dinner and then milkshakes on the roof?" Liz asks. 

"Perfect," Maria says.


End file.
